Research Themes:
Wideband Leaky-Wave Antennas and Arrays
New communication systems require high-speed data transfer and need high frequency, wideband, and directive antennas. Leaky-wave antennas are a desirable type of antennas for millimetre and sub-millimetre waves since they can produce a high directive radiation with a single feeding. The latter is an enormous advantage to reducing the cost and losses at high frequency. Despite these advantages, their dispersive nature inherently produces a beam squint effect in their radiation patterns.
Electromagnetic (EM) emission from substrate edges is increasing significantly when the communication systems move from the first generation to the fifth generation using millimeter waves. It is reasonable and very interesting to utilize the substrate edge to design antennas. Substrate edge antennas (SEAs) are easy to form arrays with multiple beams or steering beams, and also very suitable to be employed together with packaging technologies. SEAs and the arrays are very promising in the next generation communication systems, like in handset terminals, indoor mmWave stations and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
Radio Waves Carrying Orbital Angular Momentum
Wireless communication based on the electromagnetic field properties of orbital angular momentum (OAM) has gained a lot of interest for multi-input-multi-output (MIMO) communication schemes. From a field theoretical perspective, OAM is well understood and can be easily quantified in electromagnetic radiation. However, when it comes to the optimization of OAM-based communication, there are still many unknowns, e.g., relative position, orientation, size, and termination of transmitting and receiving arrays.
Live Projects:
- 2023-2025: EPSRC ECR International Collaboration Grant
- “Active Integrated Antenna for Intelligent Arrays in 6G Non-Terrestrial Networks”.
- Principal Investigator, two years, GBP 208,000.
- 2022-2023: Royal Society Research Grant
- “Millimeter-Wave Active Integrated Lens Antenna”.
- Principal Investigator, one year, GBP 20,000.
- 2022-2023: Research Recovery Fund
- “Millimeter-Wave (mmW) Shared-Volume Dual-Polarized Substrate Integrated Horn Arrays for 5G Handset Applications”.
- Principal Investigator, one year, GBP 16,375.
- 2020-2023: German Research Foundation (DFG) Grant
- “Properties of Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) Waves with Respect to Wireless Communication in Complex Environments and to Electromagnetic Interference”.
- Investigator, three years, EUR 287,500.
Recent Projects
- 2020-2022: Heriot-Watt University EPSRC Core Equipment Award 2020
- Co-Investigator, two years, GBP 655,000.
- 2016-2018: Fellowship from Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
- “Fast Analysis and Optimization of Substrate Integrated Waveguide (SIW) Antennas Using the Contour Integral Method (CIM)”.
- Principal Investigator, two years, ≈ EUR 100,000.
- 2014-2015: Fellowship from Swiss Government Excellence Scholarship
- “Study and Application of Substrate Integrated Waveguide (SIW) Antennas”
- Principal Investigator, one year, ≈ CHF 35,000.
Recent Publications:
LWang Research Group 